Although Maj. Barbara S. King initially became involved in her profession to help pay for college, by the end of her basic military training, she was hooked. Immediately after graduation from advanced individual training, she began looking for full-time work in the National Guard, and nine months later, she was hired for the first in a long line of U.S. Department of Defense positions. Ms. King proceeded to garner experience overseeing the financial management and administration of various programs under the construction and facilities management office for the Missouri Army National Guard, and knew she was committed for life.
Now a performance assessment officer for the Business Transformation Office of the National Guard Bureau, she parlays more than two decades of professional excellence to the position. Her responsibilities include overseeing the sustainment, restoration and modernization programs, supporting the office’s mission to optimize the efficiency and effectiveness of business processes and systems, and reviewing projects that allow the 54 states and territories to maintain their Army National Guard facilities. She also coaches prospective Green and Black belt Lean Sigma Six candidates, and handles the implementation and sustainment of integrated and performance management programs.
One of the highlights of Ms. King’s career was when she was deployed to Iraq from 2003 to 2004. It was difficult for her to be away from home for so long, but along the way, she had the opportunity to meet and work with military members from all over the world. She was humbled by how the Iraqi people lived, and was honored to lead an incredible group of soldiers while she was there.
Ms. King’s hard work and dedication have not gone unnoticed. She was the recipient of the Regional Award for Excellence from the U.S. Army in 2009, and of numerous team member citations and team member awards from the United States Armed Forces. She attributes her success to God for helping keep her on track and to her mother for raising her to be the best, as well as to her desire to make a difference and her willingness to take on a variety of tasks. Ms. King truly believes it is better to be a “jack of all trades and master of none,” because she feels that the more she can learn, the more help she can be to others.
To prepare for her career, Ms. King earned a Master of Science in performance improvement from Grantham University in 2017 and a Bachelor of Arts in music from Excelsior College in 2006. She also became a certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt in 2017, a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt in 2015, and a certified defense financial manager in 2013. Further, she joined prominent professional organizations like the International Society for Performance Improvement, Veterans of Foreign Wars, The National Guard Association of the United States, and the American Society of Military Comptrollers. Looking to the future, Ms. King intends to continue on in the military, advancing to a higher leadership position. She aspires to be remembered as someone who thoroughly enjoyed her work and her life.